Archive for Food Additives

Mac N Cheese and Baby Formula – Getting Us Hooked Early

June 11, 2013 / / Comments Off on Mac N Cheese and Baby Formula – Getting Us Hooked Early

kids eating mac n cheeseWhat do summer picnics and feeding our kids have in common?  Macaroni and Cheese!  It’s pretty synonymous with both.

Here’s the ingredient list for Kraft Mac N Cheese :  Actually, forget it, it’s LONG. Here’s the condensed version: 15 ingredients, several chemicals, 2 (cancer causing/headache making/ADD inducing) food dyes, and 47 grams of carbohydrate – in a COUPLE OF OUNCES!

What about Annie’s Organic Mac N Cheese?  The ingredient list is shorter – 5 ingredients, but a small, 2.5 OUNCE serving of this stuff is 47 grams of carbohydrate – there goes the blood sugar.

Here’s the stats on Panera’s Mac N Cheese: 79 Ingredients,  490 calories, 37 grams of carbs, 30 grams of fat, and 1020 mg of sodium.  This comes in a little cup, I know because my youngest tricked me after a lacrosse game into taking her there and she came out with that.  I almost wrecked the car!

Mac N Cheese is a standard American comfort food.  We feed this to our small children, and couple selling macncheesecontinue eating it through adulthood.  Parents, this stuff is poison.  Don’t fool yourself by thinking that if your kids are slim, or don’t eat too much, or are very active, that a little bit of Mac N Cheese won’t hurt.  All food hurts or helps.  We build or destroy our health with every bite.  It honestly matters.

There’s more than just health to consider, there’s Habit Building.  We help our children build and form food and eating habits that last their entire life time.

Eating every single time a whim hits?  Life time habit.

Snack before bed?  Life time habit.

Just eating bread/carby/starchy/bland foods? Life time habit.

Barely eating vegetables? Life time habit.

Junk food for every movie/event/reward/?  Life time habit.

I could say it’ll catch up to them, but that’s false.  When you eat processed, chemical, high carb, hydrogenated oil filled foods, the effects are IMMEDIATE, even for kids. Just because the effects aren’t obvious to the eye doesn’t mean they aren’t happening.  When you quit thinking of food in terms of calories, and start giving a nutrient assessment to the food, and when you know what the “anti-nutrients” do (cancer, migraines, behavior /mood issues, skin problems, depression, auto-immune….)  it becomes more and more apparent that it really matters what we, and our children, put in our mouths.  Every bite either adds to our health, or detracts from it.  We build our health, or our lack of health, with our accumulated food choices through the years.

whenIgetthristyIonlydrinksimilacOne more interesting ingredient list, baby formula. Big Food is determined to hook us from the very beginning.  Similac Sensitive has 54 ingredients.  Here’s the top of the list:  Corn Syrup, Sugar, Maltodextrin, Milk Protein Isolate, Safflower Oil, Soy Oil, Coconut Oil, Galactooligosaccharides (SUGAR),  followed with more oils and Synthetic Vitamins and Minerals.  I fed a little formula when my kids were babies and never even thought to look at the ingredients.  Their advertising makes you think you’re feeding your baby Manna from Heaven; instead, you’re feeding them Corn Syrup, Sugars, Chemicals, and Omega 6 oils.  Honestly, I consider this stuff to be poison from the devil:  it makes us sick, weak, tired, and fat; yet like so much other food poison, it tastes delicious and triggers food addictions.

Read your ingredient lists, plan, shop, schedule a couple hours in your week to prep and power cook food in big batches, pack your lunch and **** start thinking of food in terms of Nutrients,… not Calories*****.    Eat Real Whole Foods.

Category: Carbs, Food Additives, Sugar /

Fermenting/Culturing Workshop, and a Looks Healthy But Isn’t

June 6, 2013 / / Comments Off on Fermenting/Culturing Workshop, and a Looks Healthy But Isn’t

Thanks so much to everyone who attended my Workshops!

germs5secondI’ve got another one scheduled for Friday, June 14th, 1-3pm, on Fermenting and Culturing Foods.  My friend and fellow Nutritional Therapy Practitioner, Gina Phelps, who is a certified Cultured Food expert and a certified GAPS practitioner, will be leading it.  She’s got the education and experience to put on a great class.  If you’re interested in learning how to make keifer, kombucha, cultured vegetables like sauerkraut and MORE, put it on your calendar to attend.    Why would you want to?  BECAUSE BENEFICIAL BACTERIA ARE IMPERATIVE TO OUR HEALTH!!  Probiotics from Real Whole Foods are more powerful and effective than probiotics from supplements.

The cost is $30/person, and will be held at the Marshall Community Center.  Well worth your time – I promise.  Email me if you’re interested.

Have you ever heard of Weight Watchers Smart Ones?  It’s a line of frozen meals, guaranteed weight watchersto taste great and make you skinny:)    Here’s the ingredient list for Smart Ones Smart Beginnings  English Muffin Sandwich Canadian Style Bacon (210 calories, 27 g carbs):

English Muffin: (Water, Enriched Bleached Wheat Flour (Wheat Flour, Malted Barley Flour, Niacin, Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate, Riboflavin, Folic Acid), Whole Wheat Flour, Yeast, Degerminated Yellow Corn Flour, Degerminated Yellow Corn Meal, Contains 2% or Less of: Wheat Gluten, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Modified Potato Starch, Soybean Oil, Salt, Vinegar, Fumaric Acid, Calcium Sulfate, Potassium Sorbate, Azodicarbonamide, Soy Lecithin), Egg White Patty (Egg Whites, Cornstarch, Xanthan Gum, Annatto), Canadian Style Turkey Bacon (Turkey Thigh Meat, Water, Salt, Dextrose, Sodium Phosphates, Sodium Erythorbate, Sodium Nitrite), Pasteurized Process American Cheese (Cultured Milk, Water, Cream, Sodium Phosphate, Salt, Lactic Acid, Sorbic Acid, Color Added, Sodium Citrate, Enzymes).

Gross.

The Average American eats 7 frozen meals a month.  I know I’ve sure eaten my share; I loved how I could have the comfort of knowing exactly how many calories and fat grams I was consuming.  Of course, I was constantly hungry, and had pretty bad stomach issues, but I never connected that to my healthy diet of frozen/ processed/ refined, but very low cal/low fat foods.  Too many people don’t.

So what’s wrong with the Chemical Concoction listed above?  To start with, it has 11 sources of carbohydrate, (did you know xanathan gum is a carb?)  all of which are highly refined and will quickly and easily be broken down to glucose molecules that rush the blood stream as a Blood Sugar High.  Big amounts of Insulin will  be released to handle the onslaught.  High Blood Sugar and High Insulin – some of the most potent inducers of Disease, Inflammation, and WEIGHT GAIN around.

There’s wheat gluten – gluten sensitivities affect ALMOST EVERYONE; annetto – which according to the FDA is one of the top 10 food allergens; sodium nitrite – a potent neurotoxin, that means it overstimulates brain cells; Azodicarbonamide -banned in all of Europe bc of it’s asthma effects, so illegal in Singapore it’s a jailing offense, our FDA has given it a GRAS (generally recognized as safe status); sodium erythorbate – some side effects include headache, fatigue, gastritis, and kidney stones.

There’s also soy and  high fructose corn syrup.

Take all these chemicals, sugars, starches, and Omega 6 oils, and how could we ever be fooled into thinking that processed Diet Foods could possibly help us achieve our health and weight goals?  The effects on our Liver (biggest source of Metabolism), our Hormones (hormones RULE our weight – not calories consumed), our Immune System, our Digestive system, our Cardiovascular system (inflammation from all this junk), our Brain/Mood/Neurotransmitter status – all disastrous!

Eating processed, refined foods, Diet or Not, is a 100% guaranteed way to induce Heart Disease, Diabetes, and Cancer.
The alternative?  Real Whole Foods!  Plan (write it down), Shop, Prep (schedule a couple hours into your week), Cook, Pack:  take back your health and get to a healthy weight, by eating real, traditional foods.   Your body NEEDS proteins, fats, vitamins, and minerals to build your organs, your tissues, your hormones, your neurotransmitters, and your brain.  Eat according to the recipe of your body!

germ phobiaOur body also needs to replenish and nourish it’s supply of Beneficial Bacteria as well; did you know that if we’re healthy, we’ll have between 4 and 8 pounds of that stuff in our Colon alone?? Wow!  Great party talk there.  Beneficial bacteria are an integral part of our Immune System, but it’s under constant assault from antibiotics, stress, and poor food choices. Learn the best way to nourish your ” Micro Biome ” in the Fermenting and Culturing Class, Friday, June 14th.

 

 

 

Category: Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't, RWF /

The Evidence Against Diet Soda – it won’t make you skinny.

May 11, 2013 / / Comments Off on The Evidence Against Diet Soda – it won’t make you skinny.
How is the Real Whole Food effort going?  Remember, it’s just a journey.  Resolve to evolve:)Today I’m going to write about Diet Soda, and there’s so much information that it’ll be a struggle to keep this short.  If you DON’T drink Diet Soda, there’s still pertinent info here, as artificial sweeteners and phosphoric acid are in many, many food products.

Here’s the gist of it:  Diet Soda is Pure Poison.
Here’s the details, and some surprising facts:  The National Institute of Health and the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition have both recently published the results of huge studies – more than 300,000 people, and longer than 14 years, where they accessed the health risks of Diet Sodas.  So these results are pretty substantial.  And surprising.
  • DIET soda drinkers are 30% more likely to be depressed than regular soda drinkers (surprising)
  • (Coffee drinkers are 10% LESS likely to be depressed than Non coffee drinkers – off topic, but interesting!)
  • Diet Soda increases the risk of Obesity by 200% – you read that right.  200%.  Not a typo.
  • Diet Soda, much more than regular soda, causes intense sugar and carb cravings.
  • Diet Soda has a high correlation to Weight Gain, Stroke, and Heart Disease, more so than regular soda.
  • Diet Soda drinkers drink TWICE as much soda as regular soda drinkers.  (Read: Twice As Many Chemicals)
Please don’t read those bullet point as me giving regular soda the green light, because that stuff’s poison too.  Pure Chemical Concoction . I’m talking about “diet soda”  for a reason:  There is a false sense of security that when we consume foods or drinks that are low in calories, /diet,oh you drink diet soda? we’re doing something good for our weight and our bodies.  If we’re talking about low cal veggies, that’s true.  If we’re talking about low cal Frankenfoods, that’s completely wrong.I bet if you’re a diet soda drinker, you’re feeling a little anxious right now. I understand.  I was addicted for years myself. But it matters that you give it up;  and Moms, it matters that you set the example for your kids.  Again, this stuff is poison.  If your kids see you drinking it, they’ll want to drink it because it’s Delicious and Highly Addictive.Okay, back to the facts.Diet Soda is usually sweetened with one of two sweeteners.   NutraSweet (aka Aspartame), which is a Neurotoxin that overstimulates brain neurons and causes neurological symptoms such as dizziness, seizures, depression, breathing problems, and weight gain.  Studies have linked it to cancer, epilepsy, Alzheimer’s, and multiple sclerosis. Aspartame contains methanol, which converts to Formaldehyde.  In the body.  Gross.  NutraSweet  also spikes insulin, that’s your fat storing hormone. The other predominant sweetener is Splenda (aka Sucralose).  Sucralose decreases good gut bacteria by about 50%.  Also, Spenda is made by adding Chlorine to Sucrose;  this creates chemical changes that make this completely unsafe for pregnant women as there’s a link to birth defects and other prenatal conditions, and Chlorinated compounds do have suppressive effects on the Immune System. Splenda/sucralose also spike insulin (more fat storing), and some studies link it to migraines, gastrointestinal issues, and thymus gland damage.  Yikes.All soda, Diet or regular, caffeinated or non-caffeinated,  contains Phosphoric Acid.  Here’s the Diet Soda /  Osteoporosis Link.

Phosphorus is a necessary mineral in our body. The problem stems from OVERconsumption of Phosphorus; the average American consumes at least 3X as much as they need.  Phosphoric Acid is very Acidic (obviously);  Calcium, which we store in our bones, is Alkalizing.  When our blood becomes too acidic from the excess Phosphoric Acid, our bones give up their Calcium to neutralize the blood, or bring it back to Basic.   Have you ever heard of “swiss cheese bones”,  because that’s what can happen when the bones have to constantly give up TOO much Calcium to bring the blood back to homeostasis.

In 2012, the Surgeon’s Generals Report predicted that by 2020, 50% of ALL Americans will have weak bones. Several studies and groups, including the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, definitively link phosphoric acid with osteoporosis.   cartoon of kid in diet soda canNot good for us and Not good for our kids.

  • Phosphoric Acid also creates such substantial changes in your URINE, that Kidney Stone risk is 30% higher.
  • Diet Soda drinkers are 61% more likely to have Heart Disease.
  • Diet Soda drinkers are 34% more likely to have Metabolic Syndrome.
How bout the bullet point that Diet drinkers drink twice as much, what’s the significance there?  Artificial sweeteners are hundreds or thousands of times SWEETER than SUGAR.
What this means is YOU’RE TRAINING YOUR TASTE BUDS, AND YOUR BRAIN, TO LOVE THE TASTE OF  “VERY, VERY, VERY SWEET”.  This is a bad thing. Sugar is Addictive. Artificial Sugars are addictive. Your “taste” for “sweet” will be excessive.  Your bodies desire for carbohydrates, starchy or sweet, will be reinforced and intensified. Does this sound familiar?  Because if it does, and you want to break your Diet Soda habit, I do know a way, other than cold turkey. If you’re good at Cold Turkey, go for it!  If not, email me.

I want to point out that I used the NIH and AJCL studies because they’re well known organizations, and the studies were enormous.  But truly, the amount of studies out there, from different Universities or other scientific groups, confirming that Diet Soda drinkers have a higher risk for obesity and health problems, is big.

Here’s my wrap up:  Even though Regular Sodas are a horrible, unhealthy, pure chemical concoction;  Diet Soda, because of the addition of artificial sweetener, is even worse.   Diet Soda drinkers have a greater risk of Depression, Weight Gain, Diabetes, Heart Disease, Obesity, and Metabolic Syndrome.  The myth of Diet Soda making you skinny, or making you look like Beyonce or Taylor Swift (who are paid promoters), is a Marketing Lie. I feel like yelling “Rage Against The Machine” here:)

Again, if you’re addicted, please email me. Read your labels, drink water, eat meats, healthy fats, tons of vegetables, some fruits, some nuts, some dairy, some seeds and legumes. Choose RWF
Category: Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't /

Serotonin and MSG

May 5, 2013 / / Comments Off on Serotonin and MSG
I recently attended a full day lecture called  “Nutritional Perspectives On Neurological Disorders”.  The guy was fantastic.  He was a Dr. from Vermont who was a great speaker, great presenter, and he had great information.  I’m obviously not a neurologist nor anywhere near that field; but there was plenty I could understand and absorb.

Here some interesting tidbits that I learned:
The amount of Serotonin you have in your brain is DIRECTLY related to the amount of Tryptophan you eat.  Directly.  Your highest food sources of Tryptophan are meats, dairy, and nuts and seeds. (it’s in other foods too, pull up a list if you want) YOU NEED PROPER/GOOD DIGESTION TO ACTUALLY GET THE TRYPTOPHAN OUT OF THE FOODS AND USE IT.  (Everything begins in the gut.)

Serotonin is an “inhibitory” neurotransmitter.  That means it has a calming effect.
When people have a hard day or a stressful event and they have INSUFFICIENT serotonin, but their brain wants some,  they will indulge in Carb/Junk Food fests, because processed/refined Carbs give quick doses of Serotonin.

Here’s the kicker: the elevated Serotonin ONLY LASTS BETWEEN 30 AND 60 MINUTES.  It’s not a permanent solution to your stress.  We all know that we can actually feel more stress when the  indulging is over. It’s also not a permanent solution to raising Serotonin.
stuffing face

High levels of Blood Glucose interferes with the chemical pathway of Tryptophan becoming Serotonin. This is NOT a contradictory statement with the above paragraph.  Tryptophan is found in meat, dairy, nuts and seeds.  RWFs!  There’s a chain of events that happens that allows the conversion of tryptophan to serotonin. High levels of BG are primarily from meals/snacks of processed and refined carbs.
Different pathways to Serotonin. One pathway, RWFs and good digestion, actually BUILDS SEROTONIN LEVELS IN YOUR BRAIN,  the other pathway basically gives you a short, temporary dose of Serotonin.  Which sounds better in the long run?

Moving on…You know how we’ve talked often about MSG – Monosodium Glutamate?   It has a couple dozen different, FDA approved names;  it’s an Excito / Neurotoxin, and it’s in at LEAST 70% of ALL processed and refined foods?  Glutamate is an EXCITATORY neurotransmitter.  That means it literally stimulates the neurons in your brain.  A LITTLE bit of this is good and normal, and some RWFs actually contain tiny amounts of glutamate.  Processed/refined foods contain whopper doses.  If you’re eating processed/refined foods all day long, or even a few times a day (or your kids are),   brain neurons are being OVERSTIMULATED to the point of exhaustion, and DEATH.  Let me repeat that :  Glutamate, an excitatory neurotransmitter present in about 70% of all processed and refined foods, overstimulates brain neurons to the point of death. For me, that’s old news.  One of my kids is epileptic, and I’ve tried hard to steer clear of glutamate – her brain’s excited enough.  Here’s the New News for me:  Brain Neurons Get Addicted To The Stimulation.  They send signals out for more stimulation.  Ever wonder why all the sudden the thought of certain foods pops into your head, and your desire for that food is overwhelming?  That’s the brain neurons – bored and anxious, and wanting their fix.

Moms,  don’t let this happen to your kids.  If they’re already addicted to junk food, they can be kid devouring jelly beansUNaddicted.  Don’t buy it, don’t bring it in your home. It will take a little while – a withdraw period – but it will happen.  Our bodies WANT to be normal and healthy. Given a chance, they will be. Eat Real Whole Foods!!!
Category: Food Additives, RWF, Sugar / Tags:

Calorie Consumption Decreases, Yet Weight Increases? & LHBI

May 2, 2013 / / Comments Off on Calorie Consumption Decreases, Yet Weight Increases? & LHBI
How’s the RWF effort going?  Reading labels a little more?

I’ve got some interesting statistics today.  The CDC (Centers for Disease Control) put out a report in February, 2013, that states that between 2000 and 2010, Americans total calorie consumption declined, yet American’s weight increased.

Some Visual:

In 1980, 46% of all Americans were overweight.
In 2000, 62% of all Americans were overweight.
In 2012, 70% of all Americans were overweight.

More Visual:

In 1992, Americans spent 30 Billion a year on Diet Products.
In 2007, Americans spent 60 Billion a year on Diet Products.
In 2010, Americans spent 70 Billion a year on Diet Products.

Americans are eating significantly less Red Meat, Dairy, and Whole Milk than in 1950.  The CDC, and the AJCN (American Journal of Clinical Nutrition), who had much comment on the CDC report, are both confused.  They hold strongly to a “calories in, calories out” paradigm;  or should I say, “calories in, calories out” fantasy.
70% of the Food Americans Eat Is Processed and Refined.  That’s a lot of Chemicals, Refined Carbs/Sugars, and Hydrogenated Oils. Diet Foods are 100% processed and refined.chips ahoy

These foods make our body sick, depressed, fat, broken, and hungry.

Here’s an ingredient list from Chips Ahoy Reduced Fat Cookies:

Doesn’t look like the ingredients on the back of the chocolate chip bag, does it. Seven sources of refined carbs, which stimulate Insulin production (the Fat Storage hormone), Soy ( phytoestroten, thyroid slowing, gut disrupting), partially hydrogenated oils (inflammatory and cell disrupting), MSG/flavors(neurotoxin), and Caramel Color.

Here’s the scoop on Caramel Color:  The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has been petitioning the FDA for years to get caramel color out of the food supply.  Both Coke and Pepsi took it out of their products last year when the CSPI published reports showing that it could cause Thyroid and Liver Cancer, and Leukemia.  The FDA is investigating….

If you want to lose weight, get healthy, and feel good mentally, you’ve got to get off the processed foods.  There’s just not one redeeming quality about them.  Whether they’re diet or non-diet, they make you sick, fat, broken, and hungry. Eat Real Whole Foods.

Category: Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't /

Change The Way You Think About Food and Skinny Cow

April 28, 2013 / / Comments Off on Change The Way You Think About Food and Skinny Cow

skinny cow ice creamDo you need to lose weight or get healthy? Because if you do, you need to make a  big, permanent mental transformation in the way you think about food. If you’ve been viewing food in terms of calories and fat, you’re on the Diet Ferris Wheel: trying to eat low cal, starving, overeating, trying to eat low cal, starving, overeating.  Low calorie diet foods, or low fat meals leave you hungry and unsatisfied.  Those kinds of meals are usually full of easy to digest, processed, refined carbs that get digested and leave your stomach very quickly.  The result: True Hunger.  If you’re eating processed/refined foods, those foods are created and designed to Make You Hungry Again Soon.Do you know what “Bliss Point” is?  It’s a term in Food Science that means a high level of Pleasure Neurons are stimulated, but Satiety is NOT stimulated (satiety comes from particular hormone signals). This isn’t a joke.

Food products are tested over and over with hundreds of subjects submitting to very technical tests to exactly determine what formula induces the highest Bliss Point.  That’s why you can’t get enough soda, crackers, frozen pizza, donuts, granola bars, etc.  These foods were created to stimulate your hunger; not satisfy your hunger.  The Snickers commercials about Snickers satisfying???  Snickers TRIGGERS the desire for more sugar or more food.This leads me to something I get asked about often: should you abstain, or can you eat junk food, or any trigger food, in Moderation?  Answer that question honestly for yourself.  Some people can’t do moderation.  They just get way too overstimulated from certain foods.  Sometimes even the THOUGHT of trigger foods sets off stimulation. (That’s why it’s smart to keep trigger foods OUT OF YOUR HOUSE OR IMMEDIATE WORK ENVIRONMENT.  Those things can call to you!) If that’s you, just be honest with yourself. If you can be truly moderate, as in a bite here or there because you’re being polite, or it’s a special occasion, be moderate.

Here’s some shocking information: Processed, refined food consumption increases every year. 70% of the foods Americans eat is Processed;  Diet Product consumption is up,  American’s total Calorie Consumption is DOWN, American’s weight continues to go UP (70% of all Americans are Overweight). Let’s just use common sense to connect these dots. Here’s a little example of a Processed Diet food, promoted to make you slim: Skinny Cow Milk Chocolate Dreamy Clusters. Skinny Cow junk foods have done an incredible job grabbing some market share as they’ve convinced lots of us that by eating their products, you can lose the pounds but keep the indulgence. Their ingredient list is protected, so I couldn’t copy it, but here’s the breakdown:  11 sources of refined carb/artificial sugar/real sugar = Insulin Up/Fat Storage increased; 3 sources of soy lecithin(allergenic, thyroid disruptor, phyto-estrogen); carrageen (major gut irritant/damager); and caramel color (carcinogen).

Your liver has to break down these chemicals, and it’s not easy.  So let’s add “liver clogger” to the list. (I’m pretty sure that’s a medical term!) Your liver is the majority of your Metabolism.  Clogged Livers = Slow Metabolism.

Does this sound like a good product to use if you want to get healthy or lose weight???  Plan, shop, chop, prep, cook in giant batches; if you want to indulge, at least make sure it’s homemade. Forget about the calories, worry about the ingredients.

Looking for recipes?  Visit these sites:  CivilizedCaveman.com, OMGPaleo.com, EverydayPaleo.com, ThePaleoMom.com, TheFoodLoversKitchen, AllDayIDreamAboutFood.com. The recipe sites are endless- you’ll never need another cookbook again unless you just like cookbooks.And last, as we get to Farmers Market Season, here’s a great website to find Farmers Markets, Co-ops, Cow Shares, and local farmers selling local products near you, visit www.localharvest.org.

Category: Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't, Psychology of Eating /

What is BHA and BHT?

April 18, 2013 / / Comments Off on What is BHA and BHT?

Today’s scoop is ammo on two ubiquitous additives to processed and refined foods:  BHA and BHT.  Don’t even worry about what those letters stand for, you’ll never see them on a package because it’s too long.  But you will see BHA and BHT on lots and lots of common food products, makeup, and skin care.
BHA and BHT are synthetic preservatives that keep fat from going rancid.  Look on cereals, breads, meats, microwave dinners, vegetables oils, margarine’s  chewing gum, any and all chips, cookies, cakes, skin lotions, face make-up,… the list is endless. Literally.  If you buy and consume processed, refined foods (and lots of restaurants use processed refined foods), you’re consuming these chemicals.cartoon of two scientists in lab
What’s so bad about them?  Well, the FDA reviewed them in the 1970s and gave then a “GRAS (generally recognized as safe) status, but acknowledged additional review was needed.  In 1986, they reviewed and just repeated that dictum.  No further review – by the FDA – has happened.
However, the Department of Health and Human Services, the Agency for Cancer Research, and The National Toxicology Program, have all declared BHA and BHT as Carcinogenic.  There’s very strong links between these products and hyperactivity in children, it’s highly suspected they cause liver damage, and it takes the average male adult TEN days to eliminate BHA from the system.
I could seriously go on and on reporting scary, negative findings on these preservatives.  But I don’t need to, right?
Here’s the take-away:  it doesn’t matter how innocent the packaging looks, or if there’s an “AHA APPROVED” stamp on it, or if it contains trigger words like “Low Fat!”;   processed, refined foods are not good for you, and cause both immediate and long term damage.
Moms, scary cancer info aside, BHA and BHT absolutely cause hyperactivity.   Why would you feed that to your children?  It’s already hard enough for a kid to sit still.
Oh the other hand, RWFs like meats, healthy fats, vegetables, fruits, beans, nuts, SINGLE INGREDIENT foods, are loaded with nutrients that fight disease and degeneration and encourage healthy cell turnover.  You want that healthy cell turnover.
***************About 60% of your daily metabolism /your daily calorie burn, happens in the LIVER!!   Not the muscles.  The next biggest user of calories are your heart and brain combined.  THEN your muscles.  If your liver – which has hundreds of jobs to do every day, is busy breaking down and trying to deal with additives, preservatives, colors, scents, dyes, etc etc, then it’s not doing it’s real jobs.  If your organs are being compromised by additives, preservatives, and other chemicals, they’re not doing their jobs.  Not only is your HEALTH very adversely affected, but your WEIGHT suffers because your METABOLISM is compromised. *******************
I don’t know which is your bigger motivating factor, health or weight.
I want you to see how INTIMITATELY tied together those things are.  Our health and our weight and our moods are all completely a result of the foods we eat day in and day out.

Check your food labels – it matters!

Category: Food Additives, Psychology of Eating /

Change Your Body By Changing Your Thoughts, and a LHBI

April 18, 2013 / / Comments Off on Change Your Body By Changing Your Thoughts, and a LHBI

You really can’t change your body without changing your thoughts. If your thoughts about food have been dominated by Calories and Fat Grams, then you’ve probably either been in a yo-yo weight pattern, or a gaining pattern, or you’re always hungry. Because thinking of food in terms of Calories and Fat is NEVER a winning, healthy, long term strategy. (70% of Americans are overweight, and Diet Foods are a Multi-Billion Dollar Industry.)
It’s the INGREDIENTS in our food, and the amount of SUGAR/CARBOHYDRATES that have the biggest impact on your hormones, your mood, your willpower, and your hunger. Here’s what I mean.

juice bottlesLook at Odwalla Juices, which you’ll find in the healthy section of your grocery store.
Wow, their Website looks Natural!! They’ve got soft colors, what looks to be hand-drawn leaves and flowers, and you can even help them Plant Trees for the Environment. You have to keep their juices refrigerated, and they have little “gluten free” signs on their bottles. Surely this would be a healthy food for you or your kids? A Real Whole Food??
I pulled out 10 different product lists, some of which had 16 ingredients, and they all contain HUGE amounts of carbohydrate. 43 grams/bottle, 30 grams/bottle, 28 grams/bottle, and so on.

All Carbs Become Sugar/Glucose In the Body. Period. Always. Carbs are Sugar/Glucose. So under the Carbohydrate line in the ingredient list, where it has a sub catagory for sugar, DISREGARD that line. It’s deceiving. All Carbs Become Sugar In the Body.
4 grams of Carbohydate equals 1 Teaspoon of sugar. Our body can handle about 2 teaspsoons of Sugar in the Blood before the pancreas has to spit out Insulin and do Damage Control.
I’ll go into this further later, but for now know this: All Excess Sugar/Carb/Blood Glucose gets remade into Triglycerides and deposited in the midriff area. Plus, this amount of sugar leads to a blood sugar high, and a blood sugar drop.
High Blood Sugar and High Insulin do a lot of damage to every area of the body: your brain, your organs, your hormones, your extremities, your eyes, your arteries.
Lots more on Blood Sugar later.
Let’s examine a FEW of the many ingredients on the ingredient lists. Soy Protein, and Soy Protein Isolate: soy is usually GMO and always a Phytoestrogen, – no one needs phytoestrogens!!! Not males, and not females. Think excess female hormones, thyroid problems, and cancer. “Invert Cane Sugar” is on several lists, that’s just Sugar. Tricalcium phosphate is on several lists, which is listed on the Hazaradous Chemical Data base as having possible side effects of irritation to the skin, eyes, lungs, and gastrointestional tract. There’s also plenty of “added” vitamins. If they’re ADDED, they’ve usually been synthesized in a factory. As opposed to Real Vitamins and Minerals and PhytoNutrients that are Naturally contained within Real Whole Foods. The ability of the body to absorb and use Real nutrients as opposed to Synthetic nutrients is very different.
The bottom line is, if you want some fruit, grab an apple or a banana, or some strawberries.
Let’s go back to my subject line: you can’t make a physical change without making a mental change. If you’ve been struggling with your weight or your health, and thinking of food in terms of just calories and fat, it’s kept you in your holding pattern. Thinking of food in terms of Real, and Whole, and Nutrients will make you Healthy. Leanness is a Side Effect of being Healthy.

Category: Carbs, Food Additives, Looks Healthy But Isn't, Psychology of Eating, RWF, Sugar / Tags: ,
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